Friday, May 17 – In her now-famous ELI Talk, Rosh Yeshiva of SVARA Rabbi Benay Lappe recounts a friend of hers talking about donkeys in the Torah: “If donkeys read Torah, all the donkey stories would jump out at them.” Benay continues: “Every time they’d see a donkey they’d go, ‘There’s me! There I am again!’ All the donkey stories they’d see, all the donkey stories that we completely miss. When I began to learn Talmud, all the donkey stories—my donkey stories—started jumping out at me.”
What she’s referring to, as a queer person, is how her perspective naturally highlights learnings, yearnings, and queries that may not arise right away for her non-queer friends reading the very same text. Hence why Emanu-El is starting our very own weekly parsha study through a queer lens, where everyone is welcome (please come, allies!) to study the week’s Torah portion using commentary from the LGBTQ2S+ Jewish world as fodder for discussion over candlelight and snacks. Duggie will be your facilitator, but our hope is that this will become a peer-led journey, beginning May 17 at 6 pm—right in the thick of Leviticus!
Summary of event details
- Date: May 17, 2024
- Time: 6:00 pm to 7:00 pm
- Where: Congregation Emanu-El Sanctuary
- Cost: none
- Registration: none
- Contact: duggan@congregationemanuel.ca
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